Christopher Morley

I warn you, said the funny looking little man with the red beard, I m here to sell this caravan of culture, and by the bones of Swinburne I think your brother s the man to buy it Christopher Morley s unforgettably weird classic tale of adventure on a traveling bookstore called Parnassus, drawn by a steed called Pegasus Not to be missed.

Recent Comments "Parnassus on Wheels"

This is a pilot for a new feel-good tv series:Opening Credits: It is a glorious morning on a deserted track somewhere in the rural Midwest. Rolling on the lane is a long gypsy-type wagon being pulled by a great big horse. On the open seat up front holding the reins is a cheery man of middle years with kind brown eyes who is laughing gently in a conversational kind of way with a fat, rather plain but very jolly lady. They are wearing clothes of the era when cars and wagons shared the roads, 1917. [...]

This is an old-fashioned, sweet novella published in 1917, about a self-described "fat old woman" (she's only 39) who's never done anything but work as a governess and, later, cook and keep house for her bachelor brother, Andrew. Helen is content with her existence until her brother decides to start writing books about the joys of country life (he calls his first book Paradise Regained) and unexpectedly becomes a celebrity author. Suddenly he's a big "literary man," traveling around looking for [...]

What is a good book?".…A good book ought to have something simple about it. And, like Eve, it ought to come from somewhere near the third rib; there ought to be a heart beating in it."Check, check and check.This is a simple, sweet story (160 pages) about a bookstore on wheels called Parnassus, the woman who buys it, and the man who can't quite give it up.I love the heart in this story. The woman is described as a fat, middle aged spinster who has spent her youth as housekeeper to her bachelor [...]

I'll admit to being sort of torn on how many stars to give this story. At times I feel like I'm a little too liberal with how I fling 5 stars around at book reviews. In this case, the story wasn't anything so complex. It was just a short, simple adventure vaguely reminiscent of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer if Tom Sawyer had really, really loved books. And been a woman. But I had so much fun reading it that I couldn't put the story down. It was short, sweet, and didn't try to be anything other th [...]

Without friends I would never have been introduced to this utterly charming novella, written in 1917. Perhaps it is less known than other books which we classify as "classics" because Parnassus on Wheels does not bridge adult and children's fiction, as do "Treasure Island" or "Huckleberry Finn". And it certainly isn't a windswept anguished romance, peopled by lovely young women as do the Brönte sisters' ilk. But it certainly stands the test of time, and for that alone, I must award it five sta [...]

" when you sell a man a book you don't just sell him twelve ounces of paper and ink and glue – you sell him a whole new life. Love and friendship and humour and ships at sea by night – there's all heaven and earth in a book." I read this delightful little novella this afternoon. I bought it at Parnassus Books in Nashville where they have loads of copies in stock at all times. It's clearly a shop favorite. 😉 Their own "Parnassus on Wheels" is a blue bus called Pegasus, Peggy for short.

"What absurd victims of contrary desires we are! If a man is settled in one place he yearns to wander; when he wanders he yearns to have a home. And yet how bestial is content—all the great things in life are done by discontented people."-- Roger Mifflin of Mifflin's Travelling ParnassusThis is a tale of adventure, and although actual mileage is accrued and county lines are crossed, it's really more a personal journey -- one woman's mission to travel outside her comfort borders. For the past 1 [...]

Ah, delightful story! I read it through in one sitting (it isn't very long) and loved every bit of the tale of Helen, Roger, and Parnassus the bookmobile. Helen is growing deeply tired of tending her brother's affairs when she meets Roger Mifflin, who wants to sell Parnassus so he can go to Brooklyn and write his book in peace. Helen, in a streak of adventure, buys the mobile and sets off to become a bookseller. I loved the descriptions—Helen is thirty-nine and "heavy" but shows plenty of sens [...]

This was a delightful little treasure! Miss Helen McGill, spinster of 39 years, did not realize how tired she was of keeping house for her brother, until the offer was made to buy the book wagon, Parnassus, and she began to count how many loaves of bread she had made over the years! How Mr. Morley wrote such an early "feminist" book is beyond me but it was well worth the read. Parnassus according to the dictionary: a collection of poems or of elegant literature. Miss McGill and Mr. Mifflin are w [...]

Charming, simply charming! I don’t believe in all my readings over the years I missed this author. I’m totally in love with this short and sweet gem of a novella, published in 1917, almost a hundred years ago. I’m going to read more of Morley. I’m definitely reading the sequel – The Haunted Bookshop – as my 1947 edition of this book has both under one cover.Despite its low page count, Parnassus on Wheels incorporates two interweaved love stories: a short, poignant romance of two midd [...]

Much can be said of our (a collective ‘our’ for those on this site) love for books. Especially when, we even read books on the topic of books. That is precisely a theme in the well-known novella penned by Christopher Morley, “Parnassus on Wheels”. “Parnassus on Wheels” follows the interaction between a wagon bookseller Roger Mifflin (Houghton-Mifflin, anyone?) and country spinster Helen McGill. Tired of being tied to the farmstead under her brother’s eye (and hoping to prevent her [...]

I discovered that this book was a prequel to The Haunted Bookshop so I just had to read it and it lived up to all my expectations. It is a short but utterly charming tale of how the bookshop came to be and I enjoyed it totally! I always like books about books and Christopher Morley is very good at writing them.

This might be the most fun I've had with a book in a long time! "Professor" Mifflin is a book salesman and Parnassus is his book caravan that he takes from farm to farm, spouting the goodness that can be found in books. A sprite little man, I imagined a leprechaun, quick on his feet with a twinkle in his eye and a love for the written word. One day he happens upon Sabine Farm, where he finds Helen McGill, an overweight, nearly 40-year-old woman who cooks and keeps the farm up for her brother And [...]

What fun. I wasn't sure what to expect except that several people whose opinions I respect have enjoyed this book so much. Sometimes it's difficult to believe that I'm reading words written so long ago, I guess because there is a more modern sensibility rising. I love this early 20th century time period more and more.I encourage all readers and booklovers to come and read about Parnassus on Wheels, the liberation of Miss McGill, the romance of life on the road.

I might have enjoyed this more had I read rather than listened to it. Much as I love Nadia May, and she does a credible Yankee accent, narration weighed heavily on the book's rather evanescent charms. Just the same, I'll get to the sequel eventually, even though I see it's not nearly so well-liked.

I love short little books that are easy to read but full of all kinds of happy fun. This is just one of those books! Helen lives on a farm with her brother. She spends plenty of time doing exactly the same thing every day, for 15 years. When a book wagon named Parnassus drives up with an offer to buy, she decides it's time for an adventure and jumps in the driver's seat. Bookish fun ensues, along with a little dose of love. This little novel was just a blast. I loved every second.

I was amazed to learn that this delightful novella was written as long ago as 1917. The heroine and narrator, Helen McGill, could be any thoroughly modern woman who becomes fed up keeping house for her brother and takes off on adventures of her own. Helen was 'rescued' by her brother Andrew from a life as a governess to settle down with him on his farm. She is a placid soul who happily washes, tends the chickens, cleans and cooks for 15 years (she calculates that she has baked 6000 loaves of bre [...]

Actually finished this one late last night, so it counts for the last of my Classic Bribe Challenge Reads. Parnassus on Wheels (1917) is the first novel by Christopher Morley. It tells the story of Helen McGill who is getting tired of taking care of her older brother Andrew who has recently become a famous "homespun" author and who is spending less and less time doing the farm chores that are supposed to be his end of the bargain. One day Roger Mifflin, owner of the Parnassus on Wheels traveling [...]